Something in the Air
by Scraggles
Summary: Fang sneaks off to a pond to be by herself, but Vanille follows her. Silence speaks volumes for those that care to listen. Warnings: Slight yuri, probably ooc, some SPOILERS. Rated T for very slight angst, lightly suggestive themes, etc.


Just a short ficlet I came up with before I went to school. The idea came when I was listening to Undisclosed Desires by Muse on replay. I just heard it today while watching a fan video of LightningxFang and it just brought up some stuff from the game that I'd been thinking about. I hope you guys enjoy!

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Fang smiled faintly in the distance. It was a bittersweet moment for her, the return to her home. Pulse's devastation was her doing, all of it, and though she'd saved Vanille from becoming a Cie'th, the memories burned her heart. Gran Pulse hadn't lost its luster entirely; it was still beautiful, but seeing all of her family gone, everyone she knew, it was enough to bring tears to her eyes.

Vanille had come to stand by her in the night, watching Cocoon's marred reflection in the pond before them. No words were spoken. Silence spoke volumes, after all, for two friends so close. Fang didn't dare look back to her friend's face - because if she did, she was sure she would burst into tears. She didn't want to throw that burden on her.

"Fang, I'm sorry." the redhead broke the silence with a heavy heart, taking a seat in the grass next to her. Fang brought a hand to her temple, weaving it into her hair. She would've avoided this moment if at all possible; she had left the group in secrecy in order to be alone, yet here she was, at her most vulnerable, being apologized to by Vanille of all people.

There were so many people Vanille had apologized to - Serah, Sazh, Lightning, Snow, Hope, almost everyone, Fang herself included, but never had she put so much emotion into one apology, because Fang meant something to her that no one else did. The pain she'd felt in her past held no comparison to the pain she'd felt when Fang snapped at her before the battle with Hecatoncheir - the pain when she'd discovered her in a lie, and all for but one reason. Vanille ran away. She ran away from everything, but not this time.

"No, I should be the one apologizing," Fang's voice was but a raspy whisper.

Vanille hugged her knees to her chest as the breeze blew through, chilling her. She scooted closer to Fang. She too was on the verge of crying. "But it's my fault-" she choked out, "all of it!"

"No, I should've never let you come with me. If I didnt, then none of this would've ever happened." Her voice shook with emotion that threatened to boil over and spill out in ways unthinkable by the raven haired l'cie. Her hair hung forward loosely, brushing the skin of her arms ever so slightly.

"But- then I would . . I would lose you," Vanille took Fang's hand between hers, wet, salty trails forming on her cheeks. They glistened under the light of the stars. "I couldn't bear to lose you."

Fang was taken aback. A tear of her own made its way down her skin. She threw her arms around the girl, burying her face in her hair deeply.

_"I couldn't bear to lose you."_

Those were the last words Vanille had said to her some five hundred odd years ago when Fang had become a l'Cie, the last thing she said before their last touch, when Fang became Ragnarok, after their crystal stasis. It hit her in the chest and bit at her like acid. The great defender, master of miracles, Fang's walls crumbled at lightning speed. Her grace was lost, every ounce of her facade dissentigrated, all in one moment.

She clutched the smaller girl as if her life depended on it, fingers coming close to digging into her, so tight was their embrace. For once in her life, Fang was taking comfort in Vanille, crying on her shoulder, clinging to her harder than she did life itself.

"Promise me- promise me that we will always be together -- no matter what happens," Vanille pleaded, holding Fang equally closely. Her fingers caressed the older woman's body desperately, as if she would dissappear into thin air the second they left her skin. Her eyes stung violently.

Fang's breathing hitched for a moment, and she thought she would vomit, but she repressed it and tried to speak as coherently as possible. "I- p-promise. I'll never leave your side," she stammered through the tears. She had cried before, but never had she done so as intensely as she was now. The sobs wracked her body, and her chest heaved, forcing her into the other girl repetitively, though she didn't mind. All she wanted was to be close to the girl.

Every time Vanille was close to someone, it tore at Fang's heart. Since they'd met, the girl was the center of her world. No one could fill that void, no one came close, and naturally, Vanille being an amicable girl, she often found plenty of someones to be close to, leaving Fang to herself, alone, a complete stranger to the rest of the world; each time she returned, she brought misery with her, leaving Fang to be her shoulder to cry on. Fang was always the knight in shining armor and always the hero without recognition, but Fang was never the damsel in distress, not in public. Nevertheless, upon her return, Fang's world would set itself back into motion. All was right as long as Fang had Vanille with her. As long as she was there, she had a reason to live.

Now, it was Vanille's turn to be the knight. It was her job to do the comforting now, even if she didn't know how to do it. She stroked Fang's back lightly, and then just as quickly as they had embraced, she pushed her backward and they were on the ground, limbs interlocked, hair mangled together, bodies intertwined in ways they'd never expected.

Fang wiped a tear from Vanille's eye, a bittersweet smile forming on her face as she rolled on top of her. The look in her eyes was absolutely enchanting. "You're really beautiful, you know that?" she said, watching the dim light play about in the girl's hair. Her heart raced. She finally had the chance she'd been hoping for for years.

Vanille's eyes widened as she clasped hands with Fang, the woman's hair teasing the exposed skin of her neck. Her head rested in the palm of Fang's free hand, and then it happened. Almost by pure instinct, Vanille moved her head forward with eyes closed, lips parted slightly. Fang's chest thumped wildly as she closed the distance, their lips meeting softly under the light of Cocoon, lingering for a few moments. The two pulled away, blushing. Vanille's eyes fluttered open, meeting Fang's own with a mixture of surprise and content.

"We'll always be together, I promise," Fang whispered. Her heart was still racing, but as long as she had Vanille, she could find comfort. A faint smile lingered on her lips as Vanille positioned herself over her, settling into sleep with her head lying on her collar bone. She sighed and kissed the girl's forehead, watching Cocoon's form in the heavens above. Perhaps there was something in the air that night, but it made no difference to her what caused her extreme stroke of luck. As long as Vanille was there, as long as she was safe, as long as they were together, nothing else seemed to matter.

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I hope you enjoyed! R&R please! I listen to my readers closely, so if anyone wants a sequel, I will do another piece, since I think this turned out beautifully compared to my other fics, which are mostly sloppy and over explanatory compared to this one, even if I don't think I pegged the characters quite right and rambled a bit. I love constructive criticism, so don't be shy!


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